Incredible rugby footage from 1901!
The old film shows a Rugby League match between Dewsbury and Manningham at Dewsbury’s Crown Flatt ground.
What is amazing is just how rough the game was even back then. The film has been identified by the British Film Institute as the oldest surviving footage of the game of rugby. The old film shows the players entering the field, several game plays and a player losing his shirt. It also shows shots of a very lively crowd and one man who is super excited!
The players uniforms are quite different, and they don’t have shoulder pads. See more great vids like this